NieR: Automata Demo Impressions

NieR: Automata is a game I've been watching very closely since it's reveal in 2015. Automata is a spin-off of the 2010 action RPG titled "NieR", which was a spin-off of the PS2 series - Drakenguard. Before I continue I want to note, if you haven't played the Drakenguard series or NieR, Automata is still playable and understandable. Don't think you have to run out and try to track down the entirety of the Drakenguard series - it'll be okay. So the conception of Automata wasn't very simple, and it took director of the original NieR, Taro Yoko and the game's producer Yosuke Saito contacting a studio they believed worthy of taking up the NieR world - Platinum Games. So with Platinum Games working in tandem with a huge majority of the original NieR team, Automata is shaping up to be one of my most anticipated games of 2017. To add to my hype, SquareEnix and Platinum Games released a demo on December 22nd.

Right when the demo starts off, players are introduced to one of the main characters, android 2B. Wasting no time, player's get to control 2B in combat, making it obvious very quickly that she is incredibly skilled. After some tutorial combat 2B meets up with 9S, a reconnaissance android. While the demo is relatively short, it gives decent insight into the post-apocalyptic world that Automata takes place in, referencing the past and the lack of humanity in the world. Environments are beautiful but incredibly stoic and somewhat barren, further emphasizing the setting. The demo culminates in a pretty intense boss fight, which I won't ruin for anyone, just download it and give it a try!

2017 is looking like a really good year for gaming already, and while it's certainly hard to play every game that releases, Automata has spiked it's way up my personal list. After playing the demo I just can't wait to dig my teeth into the full game come March.